Reviews

The Agathas by Liz Lawson, Kathleen Glasgow

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adriannasophiabookss's review against another edition

4.0

I’ve been wanting to read a Kathleen Glasgow novel for a while and I’ve heard amazing things about Liz Lawson too. Safe to say I wasn’t let down with this one.

This is a YA thriller following two teenage girls as they investigate the murder of a fellow classmate in the small town of Castle Cove. Alice became the talk of the town after she disappeared for five days and then returned completely unscathed. Now her best friend is with her ex boyfriend and none of her friends will talk to her. Iris lives with her mother in a rundown apartment with the constant fear of her violent father returning. She dreams of having enough money to escape with her mother and disappear where he can’t find them. When Alice’s parents ask Iris to tutor Alice for £3,000 Iris obviously jumps at the chance to earn some cash. Tutoring quickly turns into sleuthing though when Brooke Donovan, Alice’s ex best friend goes missing and is then found dead at the bottom of a cliff after an eventful Halloween party. Brooke’s grandmother Lilian offers a reward of £50,000 to anyone who can solve the case and when Alice’s ex and Brooke’s boyfriend Steve Anderson is arrested for the murder, Alice and Iris team up to investigate. The girls quickly discover though that investigating a murder isn’t as fun as it seems in the Agatha Christie novels Alice reads and they soon get more than they bargained for.

This was so GOOD. I didn’t guess who the killer was which I am overjoyed about because I am sick of being able to guess who did it within the first 30 pages. This was full of twists and turns and although it’s over 400 pages the pacing was good and I was kept interested. Mainly a mystery-thriller, this book also explores navigating life as a teenager and high school student and how difficult that can be. It also looks a lot at friendship, especially friendships as a teenager and how they impact us:

I absolutely adored all of the characters apart from the obvious ones. Alice was unlikeable in a lot of ways but I couldn’t dislike her because the authors conveyed her in a way that made us understand and empathise with her behaviour. I related to Iris particularly because of her situation with her father and I loved how strong and determined she was. The friendship between the two of them is beautiful and I can’t wait to read more of it.

I know YA thrillers get a bad rep but this one is worth checking out in my opinion and the sequel is already out so you can binge the two books. A bonus in my opinion.

matchareads's review against another edition

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5.0

This was SO much fun! Finished it in mere hours. Could not put it down.

clak5686's review against another edition

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mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

I really enjoyed this book. The characters are interesting. The book is set in Castle Cove, California which is full of the very rich. Of course, every community has citizens who are struggling to get by. The story is of the friendship that begins between one of the rich high school students and her tutor who is from the same school. Alice Ogilve's is obsessed with Agatha Christie. When a student is murdered, she gets her tutor, Iris Adams, to help her solve the crime. Both girls are dealing with trauma as well as the normal high school issues. The case was interesting. Their approach was fun to read. I would recommend this book and will be reading the next in the series.

Content Warnings